Bilifuduo (97.12)

Comcast's Super Bowl Hangover

11

It's the dreaded Super Monday, not only for Americans across the country, but also for Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA), which owns NBCUniversal and is facing a new round of vexing issues. Comcast executed the selling of Super Bowl ad space perfectly; with $3.5 million per 30-second ad and the implementation of multiple platforms to stream the Super Bowl, Comcast was able to charge record prices for the ads while at the same time expanding its ad space. However, Super Bowl half-time performer M.I.A. put a damper on the show with her obscene gesture, which in turn could result in a potential multi-million dollar fine for NBC, according to the Wall Street Journal. Moreover, Disney (NYSE: DIS) recently announced that it is currently in talks with Univision to create an English-language 24-hour cable news channel. These talks are expected to result in a channel that will launch before the November elections, one which will directly compete with Comcast's MSNBC as well as Time Warner Inc's CNN (NYSE: TWX) and News Corp.'s Fox News (NASDAQ: NWS). Comcast also continues to face opposition from Washington to its marketing alliance with Verizon Wireless, co-owned by Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) and Vodafone (NASDAQ: VOD). Although the Super Bowl was extremely lucrative for NBC and its parent company Comcast, Comcast will now face a new host of challenges.